Initiatives

 The Preferred/Chosen Name Policy was implemented August 2022.

 "Mercer University recognizes that individuals may wish to be addressed by names other than their legal first names. For this reason, the University allows students, faculty, and staff to request a preferred or chosen first name to be used wherever reasonably possible. If a preferred or chosen first name is not used, an individual’s legal name will continue to appear in all University systems."

“Hidden Threads: Intellect, Diversity and Religious Freedom”, is an ongoing year-long project that was launched by the My Name Matters Campaign. They noticed a lack of recognition for LGBTQ+ Mercerians, past and present. This research study has been designed to explore and analyze the historical timeline and debate between Mercer University and the Georgia Baptist Convention severance. With the contribution of the materials stored in the University’s Archives we have compiled a concise timeline of events and public debate. We are now seeking interviews to explore the nuances of the queer experiences of Mercer Faculty, Staff, Students, Alumni and Outside Influential Figures. Through this project LGBTQ+ Mercerians’, and history at Mercer can be properly acknowledged.  We will be revealing a variety of topics ranging from diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies and training, The Georgia Baptist Convention Severance with Mercer, LGBTQI+ issues on campus and personal experiences. 

Histories can never be completely captured through material artifacts alone. This exhibit is a partial history of Mercer’s integration. It’s a history that has been reclaimed from the archives - from The Cluster and The Cauldron and from the Board of Trustees minutes. It is a partial history because the people in positions of power to write the unfolding of Mercer’s history have largely been white people. In this exhibit, we try to recenter the thinking, writing, struggles, and victories of black students on campus in the years following integration.  Reflecting on this past, begs a question of all Mercerians: How will we move the conversation forward? How can we make Mercer an exemplary place to study and learn, to forge friendships and community, in the most inclusive and equitable way possible?

Between 1826 and 1865, nearly every issue of the Macon Telegraph included advertisements for enslaved people: runaways, auctions, and detainees. This exhibition, researched and interpreted by Mercer University students, highlights the humanity of the enslaved people escaping bondage. In these newspaper notices, we can see the personalities, skills, loved ones, stories, and resilience of Macon’s freedom seekers.